Driver issues

FMCSA exempts deaf drivers despite CVTA objections

Despite safety concerns expressed by a national truck driver training group, federal regulators confirmed on Thursday their exemption of 18 drivers who are deaf or hard of hearing from certain commercial vehicle regulations.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration stated that it had evaluated the applicants’ eligibility “and determined that granting exemptions to these individuals would likely achieve a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level that would be...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fmcsa-exempts-deaf-drivers-despite-cvta-objections

Broker oversight, truck speed limiters among 2023 policy action items

The Biden administration began 2022 by rolling out its National Roadway Safety Strategy, a U.S. Department of Transportation-wide initiative aimed at addressing rising injuries and deaths involving cars and trucks.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration — and Congress — is expected to advance regulatory and legislative policy that either directly or indirectly attempts to tackle the problem.

Truck parking

With Republicans taking control of the House, a divided government will make it more...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/action-on-broker-oversight-truck-speed-limiters-expected-in-2023

Decade-long misclassification case against Hub settled for roughly $5 million; California’s ABC test loomed in the background

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A worker misclassification case involving intermodal giant Hub Group Inc. has settled, just shy of...

FMCSA denies carriers’ request to report truck driver hair tests

Robin Hutcheson argues that federal statute prevents her from approving a drug-test exemption that some of the nation’s largest trucking companies argue would have kept thousands of drug-abusing drivers off the roads.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration chief stated in a public filing on Thursday that she was therefore obligated to deny an application filed by a group of 11 major truckload operators seeking an exemption from federal regulations to require positive hair tests be...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fmcsa-denies-carriers-request-to-report-truck-driver-hair-tests

Trucking industry worried after EPA issues final rule on NOx emissions

The Environmental Protection Agency made good on its promise to issue a final rule on heavy-duty truck tailpipe emissions by the end of the year, but the first take on the rule from engine manufacturers and trucking organizations is that compliance will be difficult.

The agency earlier this year proposed two options for drastically reducing nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions: a two-step process with standards getting progressively tighter in model years (MY) 2027 and 2031, or a one-step standard in...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/trucking-industry-worried-after-epa-issues-final-rule-on-nox-emissions

Appellate court hears arguments on constitutionality of California’s Prop 22

An appellate court must sort through several legal interpretations after hearing arguments on whether California should allow Prop 22, the 2020 referendum designed to exempt the state’s gig workers from the AB5 independent contractor classification law. 

Voters approved Prop 22 by a hefty margin on Election Day in 2020. It blocked gig drivers, like those from Uber (NYSE: UBER), Lyft (NASDAQ: LYFT) and DoorDash (NYSE: DASH), from being governed by AB5. But Alameda County Judge Frank Roesch ruled...

New legislation provides bathroom access for truck drivers

New legislation would for the first time require commercial warehouses, retailers and ports to allow truck drivers to use their restroom facilities when picking up or dropping off freight.

The Trucker Bathroom Access Act, introduced Thursday by U.S. Reps. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) and Chrissy Houlahan (D-Penn.), adds language to federal law to ensure such access while drivers are working.

“American truckers are this nation’s backbone, and we owe them a debt of gratitude for the tremendous...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/new-legislation-provides-bathroom-access-for-truck-drivers

Gig drivers get day in court in appeal of California’s Prop 22 

The next step in the battle over Proposition 22 and AB5 in California unfolds Tuesday in an appellate court.

What’s at stake is the ruling from August 2021 by an Alameda County Superior Court judge that Prop 22, which blocks the imposition of AB5 among gig drivers for companies such as Uber (NYSE: UBER), Lyft and DoorDash, is unconstitutional. 

That ruling by Judge Frank Roesch found that Prop 22 was unconstitutional because it conflicted with various aspects of the state’s workers’ compensation...

Prep drug and alcohol testing programs for 2023

As 2022 comes to a close, many carriers may be conducting end-of-the-year reviews on various aspects of their organizations. What worked in 2022? What needs some fine-tuning? And does anything need an overhaul?

In January 2020, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) officially launched its Commercial Driver’s License Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. As a result, a drug and alcohol testing program took on added importance for carriers. As carriers conduct operational reviews, an...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/prep-drug-and-alcohol-testing-programs-for-2023

FMCSA considering limiting scope of emergency waivers

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is proposing to roll back the relief automatically given to commercial truckers and trucking companies when disaster strikes.

The change, which would alter a rule established in 1992, would mean that during a regional emergency caused by weather or other supply chain disruptions, drivers and carriers would be exempt only from daily and weekly limits on driving time and not other requirements that are also exempt in current emergency waivers.

Those...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fmcsa-considering-limiting-scope-of-emergency-waivers

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